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Organic chemistry in Titan's upper atmosphere and its astrobiological consequences: I. Views towards Cassini plasma spectrometer (CAPS) and ion neutral mass spectrometer (INMS) experiments in space

Sittler, E. C.; Ali, A.; Chornay, D. +2 more

The discovery of carbocations and carbanions by Ion Neutral Mass Spectrometer (INMS) and the Cassini Plasma Spectrometer (CAPS) instruments onboard the Cassini spacecraft in Titan's upper atmosphere is truly amazing for astrochemists and astrobiologists. In this paper we identify the reaction mechanisms for the growth of the complex macromolecules…

Plasma regions, charged dust and field-aligned currents near Enceladus

Gurnett, D. A.; Dougherty, M. K.; Kurth, W. S. +7 more

We use data from several instruments on board Cassini to determine the characteristics of the plasma and dust regions around Saturn's moon Enceladus. For this we utilize the Langmuir probe and the electric antenna connected to the wideband receiver of the radio and plasma wave science (RPWS) instrument package as well as the magnetometer (MAG). We…

The role of ion-neutral collisions in Titan's magnetospheric interaction

Sillanpää, Ilkka; Johnson, Robert E.

We have studied the effects of ion-neutral collisions on Titan's interaction with the magnetospheric plasma flow and also on the Alfvén wings formed in this super-Alfvénic interaction. We have used the HYB-Titan hybrid simulation model to study the role of charge exchange processes and elastic ion collisions in the interaction region. The simulati…